Chapter 5: Identifying Research Problems, Research Questions, and Hypotheses

- A research problem is an issue or gap in knowledge that the researcher aims to address. - The problem statement justifies why the research is necessary. - The statement of purpose summarizes the goal of the study. - Research questions are specific queries that researchers want to answer.

When developing a research problem, it is important to free your creative mind and imagine a problem that aligns with your interests. For example, within the broad context of disaster nursing competence and education, you could focus on disaster nursing for pregnant women and explore educational approaches. When writing the research problem statement, clearly state what is problematic and needs to be solved.

A good problem statement in nursing practice should identify the problematic areas, provide background information, define the scope of the problem, highlight its consequences and knowledge gaps. It should also propose a solution. To create an effective problem statement, start by identifying what is wrong with current nursing practices and understanding the nature of the nursing problem. Consider factors such as how many nurses or patients are affected by this issue and what it would cost to fix it. Additionally, determine what aspects of the nursing problem are still unknown.

When writing a purpose statement, researchers use terms like aim, goal, and objectives. The purpose statement should indicate the population, intervention, comparison, and outcomes (PICO elements). In qualitative research, terms like explore or investigate may be used to provide context about the phenomenon of investigation. Grounded theory focuses on processes and social interactions while phenomenology is interested in experiences.

Research questions are crucial in ethnography as they help to understand the culture. They should be clear, specific, focused, concise, complex and arguable.

Research hypotheses are open to debate and not accepted as fact. They are based on research conducted on a specific topic. A research hypothesis can be tested and includes independent and dependent variables. It states the expected relationship between these variables.